Asia struggles with vaccine passports as delta challenges region

Lack of common entry standards makes travel resumption difficult

20210816 Changi airprort

People walk through Changi Airport in Singapore. The city-sate has begun granting entry to fully vaccinated foreign workers and their dependents.  © Reuters

ERI SUGIURA, Nikkei staff writer

TOKYO -- Asian countries are increasingly counting on COVID-19 vaccination certificates to normalize international business travel, which has all but dried up due to the pandemic.

However, the rapid spread of the delta variant has added to the difficulty of coming up with common entry standards, given differences in vaccination rates and public health capacities in Asia. This highlights the challenge of opening borders and exempting travelers from quarantines through European-style "vaccine passports."

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